After a crazy Cubs week, full of news and groundbreaking signings like those of Trever Miller and Matt Tolbert combined with another eye-opening list of prospects from BA that no one has ever thought of before, it is hard just to catch one’s breath.

Can you sense the sarcasm? Good, because I am laying it on pretty thick.

And as I am typing this, word breaks across the wire that the Cubs landed themselves and 18-year-old Cuban prodigy. I am pretty sure that I had something to with that by typing the opening paragraph at the precise time I did. You are welcome.

And I digress, it has been rather quiet so new prospect lists are a good way to create conversation and discussion and debate. Who is the Cubs best prospect? I have no idea. That is as honest as I can be.

So, let’s shake it up with some ramblings on a Friday. And I sure hope this can create some good banter to get the Super weekend started.

• Welcome to the Chicago Cubs organizations, Gerardo Concepcion!

• Madonna is the halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl. I prefer Madonna as the entertainment in the thrilling legal feature “Body of Evidence.”

• FIFTEEN DAYS!!

• Scotty B. is not having a lot of success this offseason. Outside of Prince, it is just a slew of one-year contracts.

• I am not upset that Scotty B. is not as successful as usual.

• Yeonis, Soler, Yeonis, Soler, Yeonis, Soler, can we please get some action going soon?

• Happy belated to Mr. Cub!

• FIFTEEN DAYS!!

• I think it is clear that I like Tom Ricketts. But I have to keep the love flowing. He is throwing more money into the Dominican, and the Cubs will have the best facility in the country.

• Hard to knock that in any way, shape or form. This man gets it. This whole thing is moving in a new direction, and it is exciting as hell.

• I am really looking forward to seeing Brett Jackson and Anthony Rizzo in spring training. My gut tells me B-Jax is ready, and he is just waiting to prove it.

• Overall though, I am very excited about Matt Szczur the most.

• What Cubs prospect are you most excited about? Please share with the class.

• FIFTEEN DAYS!!

• Baseball America is in love with Baez. That is going out on a limb as far as I’m concerned. Ranking a totally unproven player second in an organization just seems silly.

• Then again, I am sure the good folks at BA really care about my thoughts.

• How much money is Garza going to get?

• I really hope Starlin’s legal troubles are resolved by Spring Training. And if he’s guilty, he should do the time.

• My point being is that I really would hate to have this hover over the entire team. History shows one person’s problems can have a horrible effect on a group.

• Derrick Rose is unbelievably good.

• FIFTEEN DAYS!!

• When the Cubs new facility opens in Mesa, the team will have two unbelievable practice facilities in two different countries. That is just good stuff.

• With the increase in international complexes, I would not be surprised to see teams start building bases near the Pacific Rim. Especially based on the results of the 2013 World Baseball Classic.

• For all of you planning on getting to Arizona this spring, that is awesome. Enjoy.

• Also, I am extremely jealous.

• I perused the list of non-roster invitees. If any make the 25-man roster, I would bet on Manny Corpas or Alfredo Amezaga. How about you?

• Again, welcome Gerardo. All the best!

• FIFTEEN DAYS!!

• Enjoy your Super Bowl weekend. Next sports stop: SPRING TRAINING!!

Thanks for riding along.

And until next time …

Stay Classy Cubs Fans!!

Hello again, everybody. It has been a few weeks, but it’s Friday, and I am back. So, let’s get together, and throw out some quick thoughts and observations about our favorite baseball team. There is a lot going on, and at any minute now the Chicago Cubans could really start taking shape.

Nonetheless, news could start breaking any minute so let’s get moving.

• After trolling around the rumors and comments, it seemed there was some hesitation in a Byrd for Prado trade. Um. Am I missing something? Done, done, done, done, done.

• I cannot fathom the Braves executing this trade, but I would hop on it in a heartbeat.

• I think the second-half of the 2011 season will most likely pigeonhole Barney as a career backup. It was just way too reminiscent of Theriot’s multiple August swoons.

• So, the Cubs could really use a second baseman, like, well, Martin Prado.

• Okay, I will leave it alone before he becomes Brian Roberts or Jake Peavy in my obsessive mind.

• Calm and settle, Manny Corpus is not on the 40-man. It was a split contract. It is okay.

• Also, the Cubs have not paid a reliever over $5 million per this offseason, which cannot be said for many teams cruising for a letdown in the next season or two.

• I mean, how much longer can Johnny Paps keep it up?

• I know this has been discussed at some length, but Cespedes’ performance is scary. And not scary good.

• I know Theo says his crew has scouted him for quite some time, but as many have said, Soriano comparisons are immediate.

• I am all good with Soler. Soler is great. The opportunity for nicknames with a guy like Soler is awesome. Soler powers the Cubs. Have Solar in your System totally completes it. Our Soler System does all nine jobs.

• Sorry, I could go on and on. Let’s hear some of your ideas below. This should be fun.

• However, to those who point out this is Thoyer’s last opportunity to spend on prospects due to the new CBA, you may be on to something. If one of the two pans out, then it was totally worth it.

• However, Jorge Soler just rolls of the tongue a bit easier than Yoenis Cespedes, don’t you think?

• Then again, it’s not my money, and if Tom is all good with it, then let’s do it. And it appears Tom is ready to spend. And he didn’t even raise ticket prices.

• Let’s roll out the red carpet for Rodrigo Lopez! Welcome back, young, er, somewhat young, er, just welcome back, captain!

• By not signing Prince Fielder, the Cubs have moved ahead in the infield defense rankings.

• There is also a comment here about not signing Prince Fielder and disappointed Lakeview restaurants, but I am not going there. You can if you would like below. I am classy. We are all classy.

• Three prospects in the top 100. Yea, McLeod has some work to do.

• I am just glad that Jackson and Rizzo are in the top 40. That is a good thing. There are others that really like Rizzo. It is not just our new trifecta.

• Speaking of trifecta, do we go McThoyer? Or McHoystein?

• Or, why don’t you tell me below? Sound good? “Good, great, grand, wonderful. Everybody on the bus!”

• And I will end on thought #23 in honor of Ryno. Let me hear your ideas below. We have a lot to discuss.

I hope your respective Fridays are absolutely fantastic. And until next time …

Stay Classy Cubs Fans!!

Brian McCabe
@BrianMcCabeOG

Anew tv show that I will avoid like the plague called “Baseball Wives” premieres this week. And even though that piece of VH1 crapola is guaranteed to dumb you down, I feel this week deserved a post in that vein.

The Chicago Cubs signed former Oakland Athletics OF David DeJesus yesterday, which means Kimberly DeJesus, Kim DeJesus, previously known as Kim Iliff is now in Chicago. And if she was on that stupid reality show she’d blow all the other baseball wives out of the water.

Observe.

Anthony Rizzo

“As the Cubs’ draft went on, we were sitting around in our draft room and we could tell what they were doing. We said ‘hey, they get it, they’re finally getting it’….That got my attention, the attention of a lot of other people in the game.”

Those words, spoken by Theo Epstein at his introductory news conference in Chicago in October of last year, speak volumes about the state of the Cubs’ farm system. Obviously, there is an element of intrigue there, with the Cubs’ drafting of a very strong class last year. They got several big prospects, and they were able to sign a big chunk of them, spending more in bonuses than they had in the previous two drafts combined.

In addition to that intrigue about the quality of the class, there is an understanding that the farm system isn’t exactly brimming with talent that is ready to contribute on the field. The Cubs ended last season as the fourth oldest roster in the National League, and despite jettisoning some serious contracts from their books, they still have guys like Alfonso Soriano and Marlon Byrd on the roster, so there is still an element of entrenched guys with big money owed them blocking the way if a hotshot starts making his way up through the system.

The one thing the Cubs’ system does have in lieu of eye-popping prospects is a tremendous amount of depth. John Sickels of the SB Nation blog Minor League Ball said the Cubs’ system may not have Major League-ready guys right now, but they have a lot of guys with potential, much like the Cleveland Indians farm system. That comparison is an accurate one, and indicates that the team very well could get contributions from these guys sometime in the future, although not in 2012.

With all of that in mind, here is a look under the hood at 10 of the top position players in the Cubs’ system today:

Anthony Rizzo, 1B 

Rizzo was acquired in the trade that sent Andrew Cashner to San Diego, and there is a good reason it took a nice return like Andrew to net a player like this. Rizzo is widely regarded as one of the top prospects in all of baseball, even being named the number one first base prospect in MLB by the league’s website.

He not only is a solid defensive first baseman (a must in an infield with Starlin Castro), but he can also drive the ball with a good amount of power, having belted 25 homers in the minors in 2010. He didn’t impress much with his first foray into the Majors last year, but General Manager Jed Hoyer obviously believed strongly enough in him to bring him along when he came from San Diego to join the Epstein regime. Bryan LaHair will likely start the season at first base for the Cubs, but Rizzo will be ready and waiting should the call arrive for him to join the roster.

Brett Jackson, OF 

Another Cub almost assured of seeing serious playing time with the big club this season, Jackson is a prototypical jack of all trades in the field. He has decent speed, some serious pop in his bat, and he is one of the best defensive outfielders the Cubs have in their system.  The main issue facing Jackson is that he is prone to striking out a lot, whiffing in 64 of his 185 plate appearances for triple-A Iowa last season.

Jackson could theoretically bump into the starting lineup with a good spring training (or if Epstein and Hoyer pull off the impossible and actually ship Soriano elsewhere), but his path will be stymied by Alfonso, Byrd, and the newly acquired David DeJesus. He has 20-20 potential and is very highly thought of (Baseball America has him ranked #1 in the system) in baseball circles.

Matt Szczur, OF 

Named the best athlete and fastest runner in the Cubs’ system by Baseball America, Szczur has a lot of scouts buzzing because of his penchant for stealing bases. He stole 24 bases a season ago in split-time action between single-A Peoria and high-A Daytona, and he was only caught five times. He is also a very solid defender, having only committed three errors in 241 chances last year.

Szczur’s most underrated ability is probably his plate discipline. It did slip a little bit in Daytona, but overall for the year, he only struck out 48 times in 480 plate appearances, and that excellent eye at the dish could lead to a future spot as a lead-off hitter for this club.

He does still need to develop more power as he gets older, and he will need to prove that last season’s dip in production when he switched teams was a blip on the radar, and not a sign of things to come.

Javier Baez, SS

The number eight rated-shortstop prospect according to MLB, Baez was the Cubs’ first round pick in 2011, and with good reason. He is a very solid hitter who wowed scouts with his bat speed and ability to hit for both average and power. In limited action in the Cubs’ system over the summer, he had five hits and two doubles in 18 plate appearances.

His defense is in need of some serious work, as he made six errors in only 27 chances last year. Rumors are swirling that he will eventually be moved to third base, but he could surprise as he is still only a matter of months removed from high school.

Wellington Castillo, C

The most likely option to usurp Geovany Soto behind the plate for the Cubs this upcoming season, Castillo has caught the eye of baseball experts with his powerful bat and his fantastic arm behind the plate. He threw out 29% of would-be base stealers last year in the minor leagues, and that number would have ranked him in the top eight catchers in MLB.

Castillo’s 15 home runs in 227 at-bats at triple-A could help land him a spot on the Cubs’ opening day roster, but he will need to work on striking out less, as he fanned 57 times with Iowa last season.

Junior Lake, SS

Lake is a prospect that a lot of people around the Cubs have been talking about, and with good reason. He has a great blend of power and speed (he hit 12 home runs and stole 38 bases in split time between high-A and double-A a season ago), and he has one of the best arms not just in the Cubs’ system, but in the minor leagues overall.

His biggest obstacle in getting to the big leagues will be whether or not he can prove capable of playing shortstop every day. With speculation growing that the Cubs could move Castro to another position, Lake would seem to be a decent fit there, but his incredible lack of plate discipline and his range could be a problem.

Josh Vitters, 3B

It has seemed like forever since Vitters entered the organization, and that’s because it has been. Drafted in 2007 (the first year of the Lou Piniella era), Vitters has been both the beneficiary and the victim of having a guy like Aramis Ramirez at third base, and the organization has made it a point to be very patient with him.

He has shown signs of coming around, hitting 14 home runs and driving in 81 runs last season in double-A, but he will need to continue to step up his game as the Epstein/Hoyer regime starts to rework the Cubs’ farm system. If he is able to become versatile enough to play first or third base, then he should be a key cog in years to come. If not, it may be time for the Cubs to go in a different direction.

Jeimer Candelario, 3B 

Candelario is a tough player to project, simply because his only numbers available have come from the Dominican Summer League, but he looks like a very promising prospect. He hit for a .337 average in 249 at-bats in the DSL, and he walked 50 times while striking out 42 times. He also drove in 53 runs and hit 16 doubles in his stint there, so his bat is definitely an asset that the Cubs are looking at developing.

He will need to work on his discipline on the basepaths, however, as he was thrown out on four of eight stolen base attempts last year.

Dan Vogelbach, 1B

The 10th-ranked first base prospect according to MLB.com, and rated as the best power-hitter in the Cubs’ system by Baseball America, Vogelbach is turning a lot of heads already. A second-round pick by the Cubs in 2011, Vogelbach stormed out of the gate with the team’s rookie league club in Arizona, racking up an impressive .912 OPS with three doubles, a home run, and six RBI in only 27 plate appearances for the club.

A big complaint about Vogelbach has been his weight, but he has slimmed down going into his first full professional season, and his development will be closely watched by a club on the lookout for talent at the corner infield positions. He should be a prospect to keep an eye on for years to come.

Marco Hernandez, SS

Hernandez is a very solid defensive shortstop, and has tremendous power to the gaps, as he illustrated in rookie league ball last year. He hit 16 doubles and five triples in only 233 plate appearances, and even though he only hit two home runs, he still drove in 42 runs. His plate discipline is also pretty good, and at only 19 years of age, he has plenty of time to develop that skill a bit, as well as his power numbers.

According to Sickels, Hernandez is a guy who could shoot up the chart in terms of prospects this coming year, so the Cubs will certainly have to keep an eye on him as he develops, despite the other shortstops that they have in the organization.

The Chicago Cubs agreed to terms on one-year contracts with six players to avoid salary arbitration: infielders Jeff Baker, Blake Dewitt and Ian Stewart; catcher Geovany Soto and right-handed pitchers Chris Volstad and Randy Wells.

I know this is story isn’t very exciting. Not really the best or most important of MLB players here. And who wants to ever read about the finer points of collective bargaining. That’s why I included plenty of pics of hot Cubs girls here.

Baker returns for his fourth season with the Cubs after batting .269 with 12 doubles, three home runs and 23 RBI in 81 games last season. He is a career .270 hitter in 460 big league games with Colorado (2005-09) and the Cubs (2009-present).

DeWitt batted .265 with 11 doubles, five home runs and 26 RBI in 121 games with the Cubs last year, his first full season with the club after being acquired from the Dodgers on July 31, 2010.  He made starts at second base (15), third base (eight) and left field (17) last season.

Soto hit an abysmal .228 (96-for-421) with 26 doubles, 17 home runs and 54 RBI in 125 games with the Cubs last season.  The 2008 N.L. Rookie of the Year is a career .258 hitter (425-for-1,648) with 106 doubles, 71 homers and 250 RBI in 503 games with the Cubs (2005-present).

Stewart is a career .236 hitter (293-for-1,242) with 61 doubles, 54 home runs and 187 RBI in 432 major league games with the Rockies (2007-11), playing the majority of his games at third base (354). Stewart has averaged 23 doubles, 20 home runs and 70 RBI per 162 games in his major league career.

Volstad was acquired in the Carlos Zambrano deal.  He went 5-13 with a 4.89 ERA (90 ER/165.2 IP) in 29 starts last year, finishing strong by posting a 2.41 ERA (10 ER/37.1 IP) in his final six starts.

Wells went 7-6 with a 4.99 ERA (75 ER/135.1 IP) in 23 starts with the Cubs last season, missing two months due to a right forearm strain.  He worked at least six innings in 16 of his 23 starts, at least seven innings in five starts and tossed two complete games.

Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports

A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio all over the world; and he’s a member of the Football Writers Association of America, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Society of Professional Journalists. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too

After a day dominated by headlines about Kerry Wood returning to the North Side, day two of the Cubs Convention in Chicago was marked by headlines in other areas. New changes to Wrigley Field were discussed, some free agency matters were addressed by the Cubs’ head honchos, and there was plenty of reaction both positive and negative to all of it.

The big announcement came at a panel about improvements that will be made to the ballpark, with a new patio section and 70-foot long LED screen that will be installed in right field. The section, which will feature a party deck, limited amount of seating, and will be sponsored by Budweiser, will be elevated more than the current bleachers are, and as you can see from the graphic provided, it will certainly be a way different look.

This announcement came with a huge amount of backlash from fans, who decried the organization’s abandonment of tradition and aesthetic beauty at the ballpark. One fan even went so far to say that if the team was going to “starting putting jumbotrons at Wrigley, just tear the damn thing down and build a new stadium.”

(Photo property of The Wrigley Blog)

To be honest, it will be very strange to see that part of the bleachers changed in such a big way, but there are plenty of reasons to give the organization the benefit of the doubt on this one. Not only will it be a money generator for the club (which Epstein and company likely will invest into other improvements in both the park itself and player development), but it likely will blend in better than it appears to in renderings. There was a similar amount of irritation when the team announced the new Batter’s Eye Lounge in center field, and that is barely noticeable from the grandstand.

Fans also should remember that Epstein oversaw a regime in Boston that installed all sorts of high tech upgrades at Fenway Park, and it’s been marveled at by baseball purists how much they simply blend in to the periphery. The new dugout seats and bullpen boxes at Wrigley were the same way, as were the LED screens that adorn both the first and third base facades of the upper deck. It is tough to make a final judgment on the area without seeing it in person, so fans should relax for a bit on this one.

In other improvements that didn’t quite cause the same uproar that the patio section did, the Cubs also announced that they will be adding improved Wi-Fi and cell phone service inside the ballpark, as well as security cameras throughout the stadium. These are creature comforts enjoyed at other places throughout baseball, and they’ll be unobtrusive and frankly an improvement over the poor service the stadium gets now.

One pricing change was also announced, as the Cubs will adopt “dynamic pricing” for their bleacher tickets. Essentially, the pricing system is modeled after buying airline tickets, in that the earlier you buy them, the cheaper they end up being. With bleacher tickets in high demand, the early tickets will be cheap, but the price will go up as fewer tickets become available. The exact scale hasn’t been decided on yet, but the team did say that the tickets will never be cheaper than they are for season ticket holders.

Besides all the changes that will be made to the ballpark itself, Cubs manager Dale Sveum also said that the team will not be pursuing free agent first baseman Prince Fielder. Despite rumors still be circulated, including ESPN’s Buster Olney saying that the Cubs were one of two teams “laying in the weeds” for Fielder’s price to come down, Sveum seemed adamant that the talk was meaningless, and that the team was going to move forward with Bryan LaHair and Anthony Rizzo as its leading contenders to land the starting job at first.

Optimism for the future has been the theme of this Cubs Convention so far, but the changes announced today have put a bit of a damper on that for some fans. The Epstein Regime has made some major changes so far, and it’s clear that they want to continue that work moving forward in more areas than just the players they put on the field. Whether Cubs fans will continue being patient as these things keep happening around them remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure: even on a weekend that’s all about hope, there’s still plenty who question whether things are going in the right direction.

After months of speculation as to whether or not he would return to the North Side, reliever Kerry Wood revealed his decision on Friday night by being the last player introduced at the Cubs Convention at the Hilton Chicago. The event, always geared toward recognizing the new faces the team has brought in over the winter, as well as appreciate the club’s history, but this time, it took on a special meaning with Wood emerging on the stage.

Despite his stated desire to stay in Chicago, Wood didn’t seem very confident that he would end up re-signing with the club, even going so far as to say on ESPN Chicago’s Waddle and Silvy show that he had been “within minutes” of signing with several other teams. Teams like the Tigers, Phillies, and many others were rumored to be destinations for the pitcher, who will turn 35 in June. In the end, however, it was his hometown Cubs that allowed him to avoid the extra hassle of travelling and moving with his family and brought him back into what can only be described as a full rebuild on the North Side.

It may not have been the most surprising announcement ever, especially with how clear Wood made it that he wanted to come back to the Cubs, but it still was nice to see Theo value Wood’s value both on and off the field to the team and to the fans, and to bring him back despite his age and the team’s singular focus on building for the future. Some fans may complain that he is taking a roster spot away from a youngster, but the reality is that this team needs some veteran leadership after some big time departures in the off-season, and Wood is perfect for that role.

For now, all Wood has to do is bask in the adulation of fans, and to continue preparing for Spring Training to open. It’s going to be a long 35 days until pitchers and catchers report to Mesa, to be sure.

In Other News…

Starlin Castro, accused of sexual assault stemming from an incident in late September, reported to the Chicago Police Department’s Belmont Station today to be interviewed in connection with  the high-profile case. While law enforcement officials say that the investigation is still pending, Castro has not been charged, and was present at the team’s Convention opener this evening.

Castro did release a statement, saying in part:

“I personally, and through my attorneys, have fully cooperated with the police in this matter…Unfortunately I cannot address the matter further at this time while the investigation is taking place. I understand that being a member of the Cubs means being a hard worker on the field and a good citizen off the field, and I always want to carry myself in a way that exceeds high expectations.”

The organization released a statement as well when the accusations were made public, saying they were hopeful that Castro would be cleared of all wrongdoing. We should know more in the weeks going forward.

SABR has a long and storied history with baseball statistical analysis, evidenced by the link between its name and sabermetrics.

Not to be confused with Sabre, the fictional company that took over Dunder Mifflin on “The Office.” SABR is producing and hosting the inaugural SABR Analytics Conference, presented by Bloomberg Sports this Spring in Arizona.

The SABR Analytics Conference will begin on Thursday, March 15 and conclude on Saturday, March 17 at the Hilton Phoenix East/Mesa in Arizona. The schedule will consist of a combination of Guest Speakers, Panels and Research Presentations — plus the inaugural SABR Case Competition, in which undergraduate and graduate students will analyze and present a real baseball operations decision.

Featured speakers will include Chicago Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts, Arizona Diamondbacks President Derrick Hall, Cleveland Indians President Mark Shapiro, Indians GM Chris Antonetti, Los Angeles Angels GM Jerry Dipoto and Milwaukee Brewers GM Doug Melvin. The conference will also feature leading analysts and researchers from MLBAM, Baseball-Reference.com, Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs, The Hardball Times, and the academic community and industry experts who will present key insights into growing trends, emerging technologies and the future of analytics on decision-making.

“We are very pleased to be again working with SABR, this time as presenting sponsor in their first-ever analytics conference,” said Bill Squadron, head of Bloomberg Sports. “Our mission is to provide the best tools possible for all involved and interested in sports, and we are delighted to work with the organization that is known for baseball research and evaluation in such a high level conference.”

For more information onthe conference and to register

Yesterday was announced a new partnership to design a state of the art player evaluation system for the Cubs’ Baseball Operations Department. This new partnership between the Chicago Cubs and Bloomberg sports is the latest step in player analytic technology, which has been creating solutions for MLB teams, players and fans for the past four years. The Cubs new system will combine video with extensive data on all professional players, as well as customized and enhanced technology to assist the evaluation process.

Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports

A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio all over the world; and he’s a member of the Football Writers Association of America, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Society of Professional Journalists. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too.

In a tumultuous off-season for the Chicago Cubs, there have been a slew of players who have found themselves on the outside looking in with the new regime of Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer doing some serious housecleaning. Aramis Ramirez has departed to Milwaukee, Carlos Pena won’t be brought back by the club, and Carlos Zambrano, Tyler Colvin, Sean Marshall, and Andrew Cashner have all been dealt away. One free agent, however, has Cubs fans torn between their loyalty to him and their willingness to allow the new baseball brain trust to shape the team as they see fit.

Kerry Wood may not have had the greatest 2011 season (3.35 ERA, 3-5 record, and a 1.29 WHIP in 55 innings), but his impact on the franchise goes far beyond just what he does on the mound. He spent the first 11 years of his career with the Cubs, and even though he left for a couple of years to pitch for the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees, his heart never left the franchise. Legendary now is the story of how he approached then General Manager Jim Hendry after the funeral of Ron Santo and said he’d want to come back to the organization. That led to a cheap $1.5 million contract that Wood signed in spite of receiving more lucrative offers from the White Sox and Red Sox.

Now, with Cubs Convention fast approaching and several teams expressing interest in Wood’s services, it isn’t certain whether or not he will return to the franchise next season. The Detroit Tigers and Cincinnati Reds are known to be interested in Wood, but the Cubs are not taking any chances apparently. According to a statement made by Hoyer today, the Cubs have offered the veteran a “substantial raise” over his last contract. Considering that Wood is requesting $4 million, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Cubs were close to that threshold.

The wait to find out as to whether or not they are going to bring him back will not be a long one. According to what Wood told NBC-5 Chicago, he will make his decision by Friday, which is also the Opening Ceremony of the Cubs Convention. The question, of course, is whether or not the Cubs will end up getting Wood back after what have been described in some corners as acrimonious discussions. The other question is whether or not the Cubs SHOULD re-sign Wood.

To start with the second question, there is little doubt that the Cubs should bring Wood back. After all, they dealt their primary set-up man in Marshall to the Reds, so they are going to need a veteran to shore up the back end of their bullpen to bridge the gap to Carlos Marmol. Granted, the Cubs probably aren’t going to win a ton of games anyway, but even though that’s the case, they still need a guy they can count on in the 7^th and 8^th innings, and that’s what Wood can give them.

Perhaps even more importantly than the actual on-field impact Wood will make, there are the off-field intangibles that he brings to the table. He is a clubhouse leader on a team that is in desperate need of one with all of the high-profile departures over the last few months, and he is viewed by many as the current day incarnation of Ernie Banks, ie Mr. Cub. There is little doubt that he is the face of the franchise in the view of fans of the club, and that kind of popularity would make parting with the Texan particularly difficult.

Ultimately, Wood is going to have to decide whether he wants to change teams in order to join a contender at his advanced age, or whether he wants to remain a Cub for at least this season to see where the rebuilding process takes the team. No one would blame him if he ended up chasing a ring, similarly to the way that Karl Malone and Gary Payton did when they joined the Los Angeles Lakers after long careers elsewhere. It wouldn’t surprise anyone, however, to see Wood pull a Steve Nash and remain with his team despite the lack of legitimate playoff chances.

We are going to have to wait and see whether or not Wood chases the money or stays at home where most fans feel he belongs, but one thing is for certain in Cubdom: in an era where the fans are being asked to be patient with a new regime, asking them to do that with the Wood negotiations might just be a mistake.

On day that Cubs fans should be celebrating both the departure of Carlos Zambrano and the arrival of super prospect Anthony Rizzo (who was an instrumental part in the trade that sent Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox), instead the news cycle on the North Side has been dominated by a bombshell dropped earlier today. Starlin Castro, the star shortstop who has been touted as the next big star for the Cubs, has been accused of sexual assault by a 22-year old woman in connection with an incident that allegedly occurred in September, according to reports.

A woman has accused Castro of taking her back to his apartment after being out at a night club, and it was there that she says he sexually assaulted her. The woman went to the hospital next evening, and according to reports, the police became involved at that point.

While these accusations are quite heinous and certainly need to be examined thoroughly, there is a degree of uncertainty that exists here. After all, if police have been involved since September, why hasn’t Castro been summoned to return to Chicago from his home in the Dominican Republic? Is the evidence they collected on that following night at the hospital not significant enough to make Castro at least a person of interest in the case before this?

According to the piece on the incident on ESPN.com, it claims that police are interested in talking to Castro when he returns to the Windy City for Cubs Convention next week (which will surely be a media circus, similar to when Blackhawks right winger Patrick Kane participated in a US Olympic camp near Chicago the week following his arrest for beating up a cab driver in Buffalo two years ago). If that is indeed true, then we could learn a lot more about the status of the investigation at that time, but until then, there is one other serious question that needs to be asked.

Is it going to be a common practice now for media outlets to publish accusations and not bonafide criminal charges? Castro has not been charged with any crime in connection with the incident at this point, so it’s curious as to why the media has gone to such great lengths to report this. If any normal person was accused of these types of crimes from an incident three months ago, but wasn’t a superstar baseball player, then the papers would wait until actual charges were filed before connecting that person’s name with the heinous act of sexual assault. That is the way that this situation should have been handled, regardless of Starlin’s status as an athlete in one of the biggest media markets in the country.

These accusations, although certainly not baseless if the police want to talk to Castro, should not have been published, and the media has established a bad precedent by doing so. Having your name connected with a crime like this, even in passing, can have a very damaging impact on your reputation, and it is something that can hang like a cloud over you just like a conviction in a court room can, and that is something that has to be taken into consideration before putting something like this in the papers.

Obviously if Castro committed the crimes he’s accused of, he deserves any punishment, and subsequent damage to his reputation, that would come his way. If, however, he is innocent of these charges and they never amount to anything, then his reputation would have been soiled for no reason, and that is indeed a sad prospect for a player who is only 22 years old.